


Relapse

by valiant_muffin



Category: My Time At Portia (Video Game)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-28
Updated: 2018-09-27
Packaged: 2019-07-18 12:34:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16118549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/valiant_muffin/pseuds/valiant_muffin
Summary: Relationships and breakups were easy when both parties were on the same page from the start to the end.For Albert and the Builder, that wasn't the case.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Another Albert fic that spawned when I broke up with him in-game (I backed up the save for when he gets more content!) and his reaction was... pretty much how this fic starts haha

“Heh, that’s fine by me.”

The woman looked relieved at his response and he couldn’t even muster even a smidgen of regret at the turn of events.

Albert knew that their fun had run its course, as it always does. He had seen this coming a mile away. What had started as an easy hook up had started to plateau to a few quick meetings until it finally petered out to not even that.

So when he and the woman he met on some business trip or another finally agreed on another date, but it started with her handing him a thorny withered branch? Well, that had just been the inevitable. There was no use getting upset over it.

In his defense, his former lover seemed to have similar feelings on the subject. She started running to catch the bus as soon as he had the dumb twig in his hands. Something about another date she booked that night.

Yeah, definitely no hard feelings there.

It was still too early for the evening crowd at the Round Table but no longer with date plans, it was the only place for Albert to go if he still wanted to enjoy the night. Django began pouring him the usual when he took a seat at the bar. Now it was just a matter of waiting for the right person to walk in.

Settling in, Albert swirled the contents of his glass for a brief moment. Yet another relationship had run its course. When he knew the end would be coming eventually, it was hard for him not to feel… indifferent about it actually happening. After all, is there such thing as a relationship not doomed to fail?

He shrugged and took a sip of his drink. There was an answer somewhere, and maybe if he was lucky, he’d find it tonight.

Just as his glass clinked against the counter top again, the front door opened. He looked up, wondering if the right person actually walked in.

They had an air of elegance about them, with long blonde hair and sharp green eyes.

And a practically non-existent chance of being the right person. Not that it was from a lack of trying, just a lesson that he learned early on that it worked better in a different way.

“Here for a drink too, Gust? Or do you have a hot date you didn’t tell me about,” Albert joked as his best friend paused at the doorway to glare at him.

Gust made a noise of disgust that, after knowing him for many years, Albert had learned was the noise Gust made before he lied. Or when he was really disgusted with something. It was hard to tell, there was a lot that guy was disgusted with.

“No. To both,” the blonde said, walking past Albert towards the booth behind him, “I forgot my watch after we ate lunch here earlier. It was careless of me.”

There wasn’t anything in the booth that Albert could see, but he nodded anyway. He knew contradicting Gust would lead to a long winded argument he didn’t really want to have with his best friend. “Happens to the best of us,” Albert said instead, turning back to his drink.

If things really had been as they appeared, Gust would “retrieve” his watch and then leave. However, Albert had a sneaking suspicion that Gust had seen the ex-lover Albert boasted of having a date with tonight, running towards the bus stop alone.

It was touching, really. There was a heart beneath that cold front Gust kept up, but it was too bad that it was wasted on him at that moment.

Albert decided to pretend that things were as they appeared anyway while Gust made some pretense in looking for his lost watch and then “finding” it in the booth (it was probably in his pocket the whole time). He continued to pretend even after Gust made no move to leave, just hovered awkwardly (in his opinion) behind him.

A long period of silence soon followed. It became increasingly obvious that Gust wasn’t going to leave without saying something. However, Albert knew that despite being concerned, that guy wasn’t going to bring it up himself, so as usual, Albert was the one that dropped his pride first to make some progress.

“Things didn’t work out. Happens to the best of us too,” he threw a genuine smile over his shoulder. He honestly didn’t feel bad about this at all.

Gust’s shoulders loosened marginally at Albert’s usual cheery attitude. “And you’re one of the best when it comes to dalliances.”

Albert winked and lifted his glass in salute to his friend. He couldn’t deny it, so he was going to take it as a compliment.

Now that Gust’s concern had been relieved, he nodded once and left Albert to his business. _Finally._ With that guy around, the ladies would have all but ignored him. They just couldn’t resist an ice prince.

It had been nice of Gust to check up on him though.

Albert turned back to the bar counter to idly watch Django refill his now empty glass. It should’ve been concerning that he was already on his second drink when the night was so young and he was still alone, but that wasn’t something he was going to worry about right now.

He brought the glass to his lips when the doors opened to reveal another blonde entering the bar, and _this_ time his chances fared better. Lucky for him, Phyllis’ shift at the clinic was over for the day.


	2. Chapter 2

Listlessly, Albert stared out the window next to his desk. He sighed.

It was well into the day and there was still work to do, but Albert found that he couldn’t find the motivation to actually do any of it. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, was it stress? No, it couldn’t be. Things with Phyllis were going the usual pace.

That is to say, it finally hit that plateau in the cycle again. Maybe he should be the one to break it off this time just to shake it up.

Not that he would actually do that to Phyllis, he had nothing against the pretty nurse, but it was starting to feel like the wait for the inevitable was eating away at him.

He sighed again, loudly.

“Stop it,” Gust snapped from his side of the office.

Looking up, Albert shot him a grin, “I know it’s easy to forget, but us humans have to breathe to live, you know?”

That earned him an eye roll. “What a waste,” Gust scoffed.

“Right, sorry, it was nothing important anyway. I’ll get back to work. These order forms won’t fill themselves,” Albert conceded, giving Gust a pointed look and knowing full well it would be ignored since Gust never bothered with paperwork.

He was right, the jerk just went back to sketching away at the design in front of him. The standoffish behavior didn’t really bother Albert though, that was just how Gust was after all. Still, his original listless mood hadn’t changed despite the friendly banter.

Albert stifled another sigh as the door to the office opened and in walked a familiar woman armed with a cool gaze.

“Albert, I need to talk to you about upgrades for my workshop,” she said to him after a brief nod in Gust’s direction that went unnoticed. As usual, she took Gust’s chilly demeanor in stride. From what Albert learned from the year he’s known her though, she took _everything_ in stride. Giant robots in hazardous ruins included.

Straightening, Albert pulled out the office’s construction catalog, “Now what would a lovely lady like yourself be interested in today?” The line just came out before he could stop himself. Not that she responded to any flirting anyway, and it was hard to tell if Albert found that fact disappointing or relieving though.

She was definitely high on his list of people not to pick a fight with, right up there with that lady from the Civil Corps, Sam.

“I need a bigger assembly station for this commission,” she replied as if he hadn’t said those honeyed words. Then the two of them fell into the natural rhythm of settling work details. _These are the materials required, this is the space needed, here’s the estimated work time, the total cost for labor would be…_

When everything was decided, Albert offered his hand for his usual handshake to seal the deal. It was not the first time he noted how firm her grip was with her hand covered in calluses from all the hard labor she went through daily. He found it different from the business folk he usually dealt with. Not bad, just different.

He liked that quality about her. Now that he thought about it, there were many things he liked about this woman. Reliable, composed, hardworking...

Oh, whoops, that handshake went on for a tad longer than formality required. Albert immediately pulled away when he caught himself, but a part of him realized that she hadn’t tried to break the contact herself either.

“So sorry! I--”

“Albert, what do you think of getting dinner this Friday?”

Embarrassingly, his brain stalled trying to process her words that sounded suspiciously like an invitation to dinner. Was he being asked out by the Builder of all people? The Builder who showed zero interest in dating or romance? How many times had Albert unthinkingly flirted with her just for it to go ignored...?

He blinked. While he did consider the Builder a good business partner, she wasn’t the type he’d usually consider as a romantic partner. Since when was she even interested?

Her cool steady gaze didn’t betray any awareness of the impact of the offer as she patiently waited for a reply.

Right. A reply. Why was he even hesitating?

“How could I say no to dinner with a beautiful lady like yourself? How does 7 o’clock at the Round Table sound?”

“It’s a date,” she said with a smile, leaving Albert standing there.

As soon as the door closed behind her, Gust was at his side, because of course that jerk had been watching everything unfold from his desk.

“Well, that’s a new low even for you,” he said.

That snapped Albert out of it quickly. “If you don’t take that back, mate, we’re going to have a problem. I can forgive a lot of the rude things that come out of your mouth, but how could you even say that about her?”

After that sudden outburst, the two men fell silent. The rare show of genuine anger from Albert caught them both off guard.

Narrowing his eyes in suspicion, it finally occurred to Gust just how Albert misunderstood him. “Calm down. That wasn’t directed at her, it was at _you_. Are you actually planning on going out with two women at once?”

“Oh, I…” Albert deflated slightly, he had forgotten about his thing with Phyllis. He had been already thinking of it as over. “I’m surprised you even know about Phyllis.”

It’s only because Albert’s known Gust for so long that he could detect the light teasing in Gust’s otherwise harsh tone, “You say that as if you don’t brag about your dates every other hour.”

“Right, sorry about that,” Albert said, not sorry at all.

Recognizing the lack of actual remorse from also having known Albert a long time, Gust made a knowing noise of disgust, “Not that your problems concern me, but do you really think dating so carelessly will help?” He turned away to return to his drafting table before Albert could respond.

Figures. That jerk always wanted to get the last word in, but as usual, an argument with Gust wasn’t something Albert wanted to pursue.

Albert sat back down instead, sighing. It’s been awhile since he actually went out with Phyllis so it probably looked like they had already broken up to the rest of the town, the Builder included. The one at fault was him.

But was he really at fault? It was just dinner. The Builder said it was a date, but it didn’t have to be. He could simply say so when they meet again. She didn’t seem like the type to be bothered by the correction.

Flipping open the construction catalog again, Albert idly traced over a design for an assembly station with his finger. The Builder was a straight shooter. When she said something, she meant it. If she wanted it to be a date… was she being serious?

Was that what Albert’s been missing?

Despite knowing the fun would end eventually, Albert always treated the lady he was with properly. It couldn’t be denied though that all the ladies he picked were the type to start relationships as easily as they ended them. He wanted love and he thought he had been chasing it, but…

Maybe this time could be different. Maybe this time he could make it feel like something more. With the Builder, that certainly seemed possible.

Having decided on what he has to do, Albert jumped to his feet and started for the door before changing his mind and dashing back to his desk. He threw the rest of the work orders into his briefcase before leaving with it in tow.

“I’ll work the rest of the evening at home. I have to head to the florist’s before Alice closes the shop!” Albert called back over his shoulder as a farewell to Gust.

Gust watched the door close behind his friend with an almost hopeful expression. Yeah, maybe this time could be different.


	3. Chapter 3

She did it. Hah, she really did it! Friday night would be the night that she would finally have some fun. The only tell from the Builder that she was excited about her new plans was her soft humming as she walked back to her workshop from the A&G Construction Company’s office.

After inheriting the workshop from her absent father, she had decided to dedicate herself to restoring it to its former glory.

She had to if she wanted to do right by the one thing that connected her to her father. When he saw her again, because she truly believed he would visit at one point, she wanted him to be proud to call her his daughter.

Nothing was going to stop her from that goal. Then within just a year of her moving to Portia, her hard work paid off and she had managed to secure the rank of top workshop in the district. Higgins be damned, the number one spot was hers!

Now that she’s hit her stride, the Builder found that she had moments where she could just… _rest_. The word was so foreign to her after charging forward for so long. She found herself just itching to do something, anything that wasn’t work.

And everyone knew that the perfect company to have if you wanted fun was Albert.

Before, she was so focused on work that she just let Albert’s usual pretty words slide. But now that she found herself with some free time, she thought it was a good time as any to show some interest back.

She still had been surprised that he actually agreed though, even if it hadn’t shown on her face.

Sure, she noticed that he flirted with her whenever he could, but wasn’t he like that with women in general? Not that she was complaining. His attention was nice and she appreciated that he kept things professional when they got to work. It was just surprising that he’d want to go out with someone who he’s talked more business with than pleasure. Did he think she would be any fun at all?

But she also half expected him to turn her down because she thought he was dating Phyllis. She’d constantly heard about him with a new woman, but never two at once. Guess the rumors that Phyllis had started seeing someone else were true.

In any case, she’s got a date now for Friday night for the first time in forever and the thought had her humming. Usually she’d be nervous about dates because she always found that there was a lot of expectations involved, but this was _Albert_.

He was never serious, right? So she was going to have some fun too.

* * *

 Albert arranged to meet Phyllis by the town’s broken well the evening after he bought the withered branch. It was close to the clinic that she worked at, but he still arrived too early and found himself pacing restlessly. Really, he was nervous? It was almost comical.

While he was no stranger to breakups, he tried to reason with himself, he’d never been the one to be _giving_ the heartless little twig, now had he?

Well, he hoped this was the start of many firsts for him. If he wanted to find love that’s been elusive to him up until now, he’d have to change. He wanted to believe that it was possible to have a relationship that wasn’t doomed from the start. A relationship with the Builder wouldn’t be the same, right?

The sound of someone clearing their throat snapped him out of his thoughts.

“I have to say, Albert, this is starting out as the least romantic date I’ve ever had,” Phyllis said as she approached him, her voice light with amusement. It wouldn’t have surprised him if she had already figured out his reason for calling her out that evening.

After all, Phyllis was more than just a pretty face and pity any fool who couldn’t see past that. It was one of the reasons why Albert had been so willing to start a relationship with her in the first place. How unfortunate his admiration hadn’t been enough to stop the inevitable though.

Still, the lack of love didn’t make this any more pleasant to him.

Albert gave her an apologetic smile, “I’m afraid romantic intentions aren’t what I had in mind tonight, beautiful.”

“And here I thought that was all you ever had on your mind,” she laughed. It wasn’t a barb, but rather an accurate observation of his character.

Shrugging, Albert couldn’t fault her on it. “What can I say? You make it hard to have anything else on my mind.”

She raised an eyebrow at that. “Charming as always, Albert, but perhaps you should save that for your new paramour.”

“Ah, seems I’ve been caught,” he pulled the withered branch from his pocket, looking slightly sheepish that she actually beat him to the punch.

To his surprise though, she pulled out her own branch from her purse, “Let’s just say we’re more alike than I’d like to admit.”

The two of them stared at each other for a long moment. Where were they supposed to go from there? Exchanging branches seemed a little silly at this point when the message was already clear to the both of them. It was over.

There was no anger or regret on either of their faces though, perhaps just a hint of relief at having it officially ended now. Maybe they really were alike as she said.

“May I ask who was able to catch your eye?” Albert asked, genuinely curious.

Phyllis’ eyes softened at his question. It was clear that she was thinking about her new lover. When she smiled this time, it was hard to miss the obvious affection in it. An affection that Albert doesn’t think he could ever recall seeing grace her features when she spoke to him.

“Sam is a… wonderful friend, and I think it’s time we could be something more.” She brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear in a surprisingly bashful manner, “Or at least I hope so.”

At that revelation, Albert had to take a moment to form a proper response.

He cleared his throat, “If you uh, tell Sam anything about us, can you please leave it at you broke up with me and you never saw this branch of mine?” The urge to immediately hide the evidence in the bushes behind him was strong.

“Oh, don’t worry about that, Albert,” she laughed, putting her own withered branch back into her purse, “I’m sure she’s aware that if she sent you to the clinic, that would just be sending you right back to me.”

“While that is true, may I remind you that dead bodies aren’t sent to the clinic?” He was half-joking, but Phyllis smiled regardless. Unable to deny that she truly did look happier now that their business was done though, Albert conceded, “I really do hope it works out for the both of you. Sam is lucky to have you.”

An expression that Albert couldn’t read crossed her face as she shook her head, “The lucky one is me.” Her words were soft.

If they really were alike, maybe it was possible that one day Albert would understand exactly what Phyllis was feeling in that moment.

“While I would ask who _your_ new girl is, I feel that I would find out soon enough,” Phyllis said after a moment passed.

That caught Albert’s curiosity. “Oh?”

“You hardly make an effort to keep your affairs private,” she explained, raising an eyebrow at him. Did he not realize?

The sudden perturbed look on his face suggested that he really didn’t. “If she agreed to go out with you, I wonder if she’s expecting something...” Phyllis mused out loud.

When he continued to stay silent, a startling realization struck her.

“What are _you_ expecting from this?”

Albert opened his mouth to respond, but shut it again without saying anything. Now that Phyllis pointed out his careless reputation to him, it actually felt embarrassing to say what he hoped for.

But Albert wasn’t one to let shame hold him back. Not entirely at least. “I… don’t want things to remain as they’ve always had,” was all he managed to say. That was the gist of it at least.

“I wish you luck as well, Albert. Sounds like you’ll need it,” Phyllis said with a pitying, yet understanding look. Then she gave him a friendly pat on his shoulder before taking her leave. His affairs weren’t her problem anymore after all.

Left alone with this thoughts, Albert remained by the broken well for a long while after. He knew what he hoped for, but what _had_ it meant that the Builder asked him out?


End file.
